New Family New Life
by McFudge
Summary: Ziva's father is killed and she comes to live with the Gibbs family, Abby, Gibbs and Jenny. Along the way, she meets new friends and buids a new life around her new family. High School fic- contains most of the major characters. Rated T just to be safe.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: Hi Guys! This is my attempt at a team in high school fic! I hope you enjoy! I would love to hear what you think!**

**Peace**

**McFudge**

15 year old Abby Gibbs was bouncing up and down with excitement, today her new adopted sister Ziva was arriving from Israel.

Abby herself had been adopted by Jenny and Jethro Gibbs when she was a baby. She had never known them as anything else than mom and dad.

Her mom, Jenny worked as the director of the federal agency NCIS. Her dad was the lead investigator of the NCIS MCRT (Major Case Response Team). They both were very loving parents and were great to Abby.

Recently, Abby's parents had been working a case with Mossad. The case had ended in tragedy and the director of Mossad, Eli David had been killed. He had been survived by only his 15 year old daughter.

Once Jenny and Gibbs had discovered that his daughter Ziva had nowhere to go, they had instantly offered to adopt her. Normally the process would take longer, but since Jen and Gibbs had friends in high places, they were able to officially adopt Ziva in less than a month.

At the moment, Abby, Gibbs and Jenny were in the car, driving to the airport in order to pick Ziva up. They arrived at Dulles Airport and went directly to the international terminal. Abby bounced up and down, the chains on her Gothic attire jangling as she bounced. Within 15 minutes, the Gibbs family spotted a teenage girl walking alone. She had olive skin, brown frizzy hair tied up with a headband and was wearing cargo pants and a loose fitting shirt.

The family walked towards them, Abby leading them.

"Hi, you must be Ziva! I'm Abby Gibbs, your new adoptive sister! Oh my gosh we're going to have so much fun! I've always wanted a sister!"

"Abby, give the girl some room to breathe. Hello Ziva I'm Jenny Gibbs. How was your flight?"

"It was uneventful Mrs. Gibbs. Thank you for asking."

"Please, call me Jenny."

"Alright, thank you Jenny."

Gibbs than stuck out his hand. "Hi Ziva. Jethro Gibbs, but you can just call me Gibbs."

"Hello Gibbs."

"Well, shall we go get your bags and head home?" Jenny asked.

"Alright." Ziva replied.

"The family reached the baggage check, Abby babbling incessantly. Hardly anyone could understand a single word she said.

"Whoa Abs, slow down. You're talking at about a mile a minute, no one can understand you." Gibbs told his daughter.

"After about a week or so, she'll slow down." Jenny told Ziva.

"This one's mine." Ziva said, pointing at a fairly large black suitcase that was just passing them.

Gibbs grabbed the bag and Abby asked, "Don't you have anything else? If I were to move, I would have like 7 bags bigger than that."

"No, that is all." Ziva replied. Then the Gibbs family climbed into the car and drove to the Gibbs family's modest home. It was a two story brick home in downtown DC. There were nice homes on either side and the house had a nice backyard. There was a pool and a nice patio. Abby had rigged a nice stereo system and they used the backyard often.

Abby dragged Ziva through the house. "Here is the living room, and the kitchen, and mom's study, dad's office is upstairs. The basement has a TV area and dad's boat. Dad is always building a boat, he loves it. Our rooms are upstairs." Abby dragged Ziva past the spacious kitchen, the comfortable looking living room, and the nice study. Then she dragged Ziva up the stairs. They opened the first door on the left when they got upstairs. Abby's room had black walls, and an overall Gothic theme. There were posters for bands like Brain Matter on the wall, and there was a rather impressive computer setup. It appeared that Abby was very proficient with technology. The bookshelf on the wall held many books on forensics and other sciences. "Well, this is my room, it's my favorite room in the house. Your room is across the hall."

Abby and Ziva crossed the hall and entered Ziva's room. The walls were a turquoise color and there was a desk with a laptop on one wall. The wall opposite the door held a closet door and dresser. There was a queen sized bed with turquoise bedding.

"Oh my gosh Abby, I love this room, it looks so comfortable and homey."

"I'm glad you like it, I helped mom and dad pick it out. "

"Thank you, it means a lot to me."

Then the two girls headed downstairs where Jenny had started dinner. They helped out and got a delicious meal on the table in no time. Jenny had made a pasta with alfredo sauce and shrimp tossed in. There was also a salad and garlic bread.

The family dug into the meal and ate hungrily.

Ziva spoke up. "Thank you so much for doing this for me. It really means a lot. I love my room."

"It's our pleasure. It will be fun having another girl Abby's age in the house. Jethro and I have always wanted children, but we found we couldn't have any on our own. We adopted Abby when she was a month old and know we're very happy to have you." Jenny replied.

"It is very different here than Israel. The weather is a lot cooler and the general atmosphere seems safer."

"Well, in general, America is a safer place than Israel. And yes, our climate is much cooler climate. By the way, Ziva what did you do for schooling in Israel?"

"Well, I attended our local high school, I was a freshman. After school, I usually ran multiple miles and I completed weapons training with my father."

Abby spit out her water. "I'm sorry, did you say weapons training?"

"Yes, I believe my father intended me to join Mossad when I turned 16. Also, in Israel, all citizens are required to serve in the military."

"Well, I can guarantee you won't have weapons classes at school." Gibbs said. He was sliently reeling. This girl was used to an entirely different world. This could be a hard start for her.

"Well that is good. I did not much want to become a heartless assassin like so many of the teenagers I have seen. I did not want to become what my brother was."

Jenny was shocked. It was a good thing they had this girl. It was unthinkable to use a child as a weapon, to teach them to kill and not feel was just horrible.

"School is out right now, but when it starts, you and Abby will both be sophomores at DC North High school."

"Ohmygosh it's going to be so much fun! I can't wait for you to meet Timmy and Kate and everyone!"

"Well, we were thinking of having a party tomorrow night for you to meet all of our friends."

"That sounds like it will be fun." Ziva said with a yawn.

"You must be very tired after the long flight. Time for bed. Abby, you can go up to your room for awhile, lights out at midnight." Jenny said.

Abby and Ziva traipsed upstairs and Ziva went straight to sleep, ready to start her new life with her new family.

**AN: What did you think? Don't worry, you'll meet everyone else next chapter. I've always seen Abby as Jenny's and Gibbs' adoptive daughter and Ziva as their adoptive daughter. I'll reveal every one else's relationships in the next chapter. Please tell me what you think**

**Thanks **

**McFudge**


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Alright, here's the second chapter! I really appreciate all the feedback. I couldn't believe the response! As usual, I would love to hear what you think.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. All rights to NCIS go to Donald P. Bellisario. **

**Peace**

**McFudge**

Ziva woke up and it took her a moment to remember where she was. The events of the previous day flooded back to her. She got up and pulled on a pair of cargoes and a t-shirt with Hebrew lettering that spelled out the name of her old high school. As much as she enjoyed Israel, she was glad not to have to deal with Mossad and her father. The Gibbs family seemed very nice and her new sister Abby seemed like a lot of fun. Ziva could not wait for the party that night. It would be a lot of fun to meet the neighbors and potential classmates.

She went downstairs and found Jenny preparing breakfast. Abby was still asleep and it seemed that Gibbs was in the basement.

"Oh hello Ziva. Did you sleep well?"

"Yes Jen, thank you. How are you this morning?"

"I am well. I didn't expect to see you this early."

"Yes, well, on my standards, this is sleeping in."

"It's six AM. You are a teenager, right?"

"In Israel I had to get up at 4:30 and run 10 miles at 5:00. At 6:30 I had to practice my weapons and hand-to-hand combat. I have a feeling that life here will move at a much slower pace."

"Wow, that's crazy. We don't move slowly, but definitely not that fast. Jethro and I have unpredictable hours and you and Abby will probably spend time alone. Abby has found plenty to entertain herself. You can take martial arts or join the track or cross country team at your new school."

"Well, I appreciate the idea, but I hate to run. I do, however greatly enjoy martial arts and working with weapons."

"Well, we can definitely look into the martial arts, weapons may be more difficult. However, some days you could possibly come to the Navy Yard and use the shooting range there."

"Thank you so much Jenny. I really appreciate how much you've done for me. You don't know how much it means to me."

"You're welcome Ziva. We're very excited to have you with us. I'm sure it will be a lot of fun to have you. Don't worry about it. Jethro and I wouldn't adopt you if we didn't want to."

"Thank you Jen."

"Oh Ziva, we'll be getting ready for the party today. Everyone will be over at six. Tomorrow we're going to go and get you and Abby registered. School starts the 24th of August. Also, cross country and all the other fall sports start the 12th. We can look at all the options and you can decide if there are any things you'd like to do."

"That sounds good Jen. Do you need any help with breakfast?"

"Sure, you can help me get the fruit chopped."

Jen and Ziva settled into their breakfast making. Jenny was making pancakes and bacon. At 7:00 a sleepy looking Abby came downstairs.

"Hey, Mom, hey Ziva. What's for breakfast?"

"Pancakes honey. You ready to help get this place ready for the party tonight?"

"Yeah, sure. I need my pancakes first."

"Alright Abs. Can you go get your dad?"

"He building his boat again?"

"What do you think?" Jen asked, sarcastically.

Abby walked downstairs and found her dad in the sawdust covered basement. The skeleton of a boat was emerging. Gibbs was sanding one of the supports.

"Hey Dad, time for breakfast."

"Kay honey, tell your mom I'll be up in a minute.

"Alright, we're having pancakes."

"Yum."

Abby headed up to the dining room and sat down at her spot.

"Dad will be up in a minute, he's just finishing something up on his boat."

"Alright girls, dig in. Dad can eat when he gets up. We all know that he'll take longer than he says."

Jenny was indeed right. The girls had already devoured 2 pancakes a piece before Gibbs got up.

After the majority of the food had been eaten, Jenny spoke up. "Well guys we've got a lot of work to get done. Jethro, would you get our tent set up and clean the pool?" Gibbs nodded, "Abby, do you think you could rig us some music?"

"Can do Fumanchu." Abby replied.

"Ziva, would you be able to help decorate?"

"Sure, I just need someone to show me where the decorations are."

"That's doable. I'll cook all the food. Anyone with nothing can do will be used in the kitchen."

The four Gibbs's worked all day. They had the house ready by five.

Abby and Ziva had changed into their suits before people arrived. Abby wore a black bikini with a cute skull pattern on the bottoms. Her hair was up in its customary pigtails. She wore a black tank top and black cheer shorts over her suit.

Ziva wore a bikini as well. It was a deep green and looked incredibly good against her olive skin. Her brown hair was bushy and pulled up into a high ponytail. She wore a loose green dress over her suit. She looked very cute.

By 5:30, the first family arrived. It was Tony Dinozzo and his cousin Kate Todd. They both lived with their grandfather Donald "Ducky" Mallard.

"Hello Gibbs family, Abigail, Jennifer and Jethro, who is this?' Ducky asked.

He was the only one who called the whole family by their full names. Although he was only the grandfather to Kate and Tony, he was like a grandfather to Abby as well and played the role of father in both Jenny's and Gibbs' life.

"I am Ziva David, actually, I guess Ziva Gibbs now." Ziva said.

"Well, my dear, you can call me Ducky. These are my grandchildren Anthony and Caitlin."

"Hi Ziva. You can call me Tony."

"Very nice to meet you Tony."

"And you can call me Kate. It's nice to meet you Ziva. I'm one of Abby's best friends. We're both going to be sophomores this year."

"It is nice to meet you as well Kate. I will be a sophomore also."

"I'll be a sophomore as well. It'll be like one big party." Tony said.

"This has the potential to be a very fun year." Ziva said.

"Why don't the four of you go outside and wait for the rest of the people to arrive. Ducky, Gibbs and I will stay inside." Jen suggested.

With that the four teenagers went outside. They stood by the pool and in very little time, Abby's best friend McGee showed up. He and Abby had been best friends since first grade. They had very similar interests, although McGee was more into computers than science. Half the school was convinced they were dating, and their best friends could tell that they had feelings for each other. It seemed like they were the only ones unaware of just how much they cared for each other.

McGee and Abby headed to the stereo system. They got the music blaring and then set to work on their latest project. It seemed like every afternoon, the two of them were outside working on something . They were currently trying to rig lights both in the pool and on the patio to blink in time with the music. They had installed many different colored lights. This was on top of the fantastic stereo system, and all the robots and machines they had built. Last summer, they had built a computer.

Meanwhile Kate, Tony and Ziva were hanging out by the pool. When Kate's friend Paula showed up she went to hang out with her. They hadn't seen each other in a while and had some catching up to do.

That left Tony and Ziva. Tony couldn't explain why, but for some reason he was attracted to Ziva. He was a bit of a womanizer, but Ziva was most definitely not his type. She was beautiful, but not your traditional blond bombshell. He hoped that they could be friends to say the very least.

Ziva had to admit that she enjoyed Tony's company. He seemed to be kind and although he was tough, he had a gentle side to him. She was more attracted to him than she'd like to admit. Her tough exterior that had been drilled into her by years of her father's training didn't make her overly trusting of Tony right away. She had betrayed too many times. Ziva sincerely hoped that this would be a chance to become more of a normal teenager. Maybe Tony could help her.

"So, Abby said you're going to be a sophomore too?" Tony asked.

"Yes, you are too, yes?"

"Yeah, Abby, Kate, Paula, McGee and I are all sophomores. Kate is my cousin and we live with our grandpa. My mom passed away and my dad was abusive so I went to live with my grandpa. Kate's parents passed away in a car crash two years ago so she came to live with us. We're our own little family."

"You and Kate seem really close. Like two beans in a pod."

"Two peas in a pod Zeeevaaah. Not two beans in a pod."

"Oh whatever. English is a very difficult language to pick up."

"Ah. You're from Israel, right Ziva?"

"Yes, I speak Hebrew, Arabic, Spanish, French, English, and I am learning Farsi."

"Wow, I'm stumbling through Spanish I."

"How about I make you a deal. I will help you with your Spanish if you help me get around this town and school."

"That sounds like a very good deal"

"Yes it does. Now Jenny was talking to me about sports this morning. Do you play any sports."

"I am in football, quarterback. Do you play any sports?"

"Well that is impressive. I am a black belt in Tae Kwon Do. I also can run a 5 minute mile, although I do not enjoy running all that much. However, I find running a very good way to stay in shape. I may join the cross country team. I am also very proficient shooter."

"Wow that's more impressive than football. What were you training to be, a spy?" Tony asked, sarcasm in his voice.

"Why yes actually. I believe my father intended me to take my brother's spot in Mossad."

"That is very impressive ninja chick. Shall we go and join the party now? It seems like a lot more people have arrived. I'll have to go introduce you."

Tony and Ziva entered the throng of people. The adults were talking while the kids played. Abby was blasting her music and some of the teenagers were dancing. Another group of kids were in the pool. Some of the younger kids were there as well. Suddenly a slower song came on.

"May I have this dance Ms. Gibbs?" Tony asked Ziva, being very goofy.

"Why yes Mr. Dinozzo." Ziva replied, a big smile on her face.

Tony pulled Ziva onto the makeshift dance floor. They danced to the music of "Beautiful Day" by U2. Tony thought it was the perfect song. Nice, but not too romantic.

Ziva was very much enjoying herself. Tony was a good dancer and Ziva hadn't been able to have this much fun in ages.

The song ended and a new one started to play. "I don't wanna be in love" by Good Charlotte rang out over the speakers. Tony and Ziva laughed and changed speeds. They were jumping and twisting and overall having a good time. Tony came up behind her and manipulated her to the pool. When they got close enough, he pushed her lightly and she fell into the pool. Tony jumped in right after Ziva.

"Oh Tony you are so dead!" Ziva yelled, fighting laughter. She splashed him and they dtarted a splash war. Abby started to splash Tony, joining Ziva's side. Kate joined Tony's side and eventually the entire pool was involved in a giant splash war. The teenagers on sill on the dance floor jumped in the pool as well. Everyone had a fantastic time. The adults standing on the sidelines were laughing.

It was safe to say that everyone was upset when the parents decided that it was time for them to go home. The people left in groups, and eventually, the only people left were Abby, Ziva, Jenny, Gibbs, Ducky, Tony, Kate and Tim. Abby approached the adults.

"Please, pretty please can Tony, Timmy and Kate stay here tonight? They could run over and get their stuff and come back. Please? It would give Ziva a chance to get to know everyone."

"I don't see a problem with it if everyone else agrees." Jenny said.

"Fine with me as long as boys and girls sleep in different rooms." Gibbs said.

"It is good with me as long as you don't have a problem with it. I will take Anthony and Caitln to go grab their things and I will bring them right back."

Ducky brought Tony and Kate back within 45 minutes. Tim had permission from his parents and got his stuff. Abby and Ziva changed into their pjs and sat down on the couch in the living room. Tony and Ziva snuggled up together on one side of the couch and Abby and McGee snuggled up on the other. Kate sat in the middle, smiling at her friends. They were both totally in love. Admittedly Tony and Ziva had just met that day, but Kate sensed a spark between them.

Abby put in a movie and they settled in. Tony enjoyed playing with Ziva's wet hair. Ziva thought she would have a problem with it. However, she felt very comfortable with him. Ziva couldn't believe it. She'd been there one day and she already had amazing friends and a guy who could be her boyfriend in her near future. Wow, she couldn't believe that she was thinking of Tony as a boyfriend. She would have to see where it went.

With that, the group of them settled into watching the movie. Before the movie was half over, all of them were asleep.

Jenny came in at about 11:00 PM. She smiled at the 5 teenagers on the couch. They looked so cute together. Gibbs came in behind her.

"I thought I said boys and girls in different rooms."

"Oh relax Jethro. They're on the couch and there's five of them. Nothing's going to happen. You're such a worrier"

"I have good reason."

"Oh come on Gibbs. Time for our bedtime. There's nothing wrong. They'll all be fine."

"Fine Jenny."

With that, Jen pulled Gibbs upstairs, leaving the sleeping teenagers, looking very comfortable on the couch.

** AN: Wow, the longest chapter I've ever written! Exciting! I would love to know what you think. Any ideas of what you'd like to see would be greatly appreciated. **

**Thanks**

**McFudge**


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Hey guys! I know, I know, it's been a long time since I updated this. I was going to go further with this chapter but I figured I'd pot it so I'd have something. I hope you enjoy it! Please review!**

**Peace**

**McFudge**

Ziva woke up and it took her a while to realize where she was. She was crashed on the couch, leaning on Tony, with Kate next to her. Given by the position of the sun, Ziva guessed that it couldn't be far past 6 AM. She extracted herself from the couch and tangle of limbs and went upstairs and put on her swim suit. She pulled her hair into a cap, went to the pool, put on her goggles and started to do her laps for the day. In Israel, the water had been a good respite from the heat. Ziva continued to swim, getting in lap after lap, pushing herself and working hard.

Meanwhile, Jenny and Jethro were just getting up. Gibbs had to go to work that day but Jen was taking the morning off to register Abby and Ziva for high school. She went downstairs and was surprised to see that Ziva was no longer on the couch with the rest of the kids. Jen looked in Ziva's room and then finally came across Ziva doing laps in the pool. She watched for a while. Ziva really was a good swimmer. Eventually, she stopped and Ziva was surprised to see Jen watching her.

"Oh hello Jenny. I did not know you were there."

"I just got up. Jethro is getting ready for work and I thought I'd come check on everyone. You are a good swimmer."

"It is one of the few exercises my father had us do that I actually enjoyed."

"Your new school has a swim team. Perhaps we could look into that today at registration. We could get the forms you need to sign up for swim team."

"I would like that. Thank you Jenny."

"I think the rest of the kids should be getting up soon. Would you like to continue swimming or get ready?"

"I think I will get ready now before I have to share the bathroom."

Ziva went upstairs and hopped into the shower. On teenage girl standards she moved incredibly fast. In fact, on anyone's standards she was moving very fast. When she was out of the shower, Ziva pulled on a pair of athletic shorts and what seemed to be a Nike shirt with Hebrew lettering.

By the time Ziva got downstairs the rest of the teenagers were starting to stir. It seemed that they did not sleep as long as usual when on a couch.

At 7 all 5 of them were in the kitchen, mostly sleepy- eyed in pjs and with bedhead. Of course, Ziva was an exception.

"I'm taking Ziva and Abby to go get registered today at about 10:00. Tony, Kate, do you know when your Grandpa's going to take you?" Jenny asked. She was making breakfast with Ziva's help.

"I don't know, probably any time." Tony said, stifling a yawn.

"Hey maybe we could all go together!" Abby squealed. It was amazing that that girl could be so energetic at 7 AM.

"I think my mom will take me anytime as well." McGee added. Although his real name was Timothy, or Tim, most people called him McGee. Abby was the only one allowed to call him Timmy. They had been dating on and off since middle school but they had stayed friends. If anything, somehow the breakups brought them closer. Most days after school McGee would come over so Abby wouldn't be all alone with Jen and Gibbs at work. Along with Kate and Tony, McGee no longer counted as company. In a way all five of them were Jenny and Gibbs' adopted children.

"Alright then. How about we all meet at school at 10:00?" Jen suggested.

There was a general consensus. Then the kids ate their breakfast and gathered their things so they could go home and get ready for registration.

Abby and Ziva headed upstairs.

"So what are you going to wear?" Abby asked.

"What do you mean?" Ziva asked.

"Oh yeah I forgot you didn't know. Every year at registration you get your yearbook picture taken."

"Well I do not have much to wear." Ziva replied.

"Oh that's okay, I'll help you find something!" Abby was excited to get to help Ziva with her wardrobe. She was a teenage girl after all.

The girls dug through Ziva's suitcase and eventually came out with a decent outfit. Ziva wore a cute pair of green cargo pants and a simple blue v-neck with her gold Star of David necklace. Her outfit wasn't fancy or dressy but it was very Ziva. They went to leave her room and as Ziva went she started to fasten her knife in its leg sheath to her shin.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!" Abby exclaimed. She did grow up with two special agents as parents but she wasn't used to kids her age with knives of that size and she definitely wasn't used to them wearing their knives.

"What? I always have at least one knife on me." Ziva replied. She was very surprised by Abby's reaction. In Israel, everyone had a knife on them, even five year olds.

"In America, we don't have knives on us. In fact, if you bring knives to school you can get expelled. That applies to any and all weapons."

"Oh, well that is very different. I will try to remember. However please stop me if I do revert to carrying it without meaning to."

"I'll try. You don't have a gun do you?" Abby just wanted to make sure.

"No, I was not allowed to bring it."

"Well, it's good that you don't. I don't think it's even legal for kids our age to have guns." Abby said. She was relieved because they could have gotten in a lot of trouble for having a gun.

Ziva flashed back to the nine year olds she had seen walking around with AK-47s and really started to realize how different America was. "I will keep that in mind. Shall we go get your outfit picked out?"

"Ok!"

The two of them spent a good 20 minutes digging through Abby's significantly larger collection of clothes and jewelry.

In the end Abby's hair was pulled into her signature high ponytails and she was wearing a spiky dog collar with spiky bracelets. Her tartan mini skirt was paired with black fishnet tights and a t-shirt with a logo for the band Brain Matter. Like Ziva, she looked very much herself.

The girls went downstairs and watched TV for awhile. Ziva was very entertained by the cop shows. They were nothing like anything she had seen in Israel. At one point during her channel surfing Abby selected a reality TV show. Ziva was baffled.

Before they knew it, it was time to go. The three of them got in the car, drove the high school , and as they walked in, Ziva was full of excitement towards starting a new chapter of her life.


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Long time no update. I know I feel really bad but here you have then next installment of New Family New Life. I'll try to update faster next time but I make no promises. I base this off my own personal experiences with high school regist**rati**on, so it's fairly accurate, at least in my mind. On a different note, I also have a fictionpresss account if anyone is interested. Reviews are always welcomed and as always I appreciate constructive criticism. I would love to know how I can improve. **

**Peace **

**McFudge**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing! I swear! I wish, but sadly no.**

Ziva and Abby walked through the doors of DC North High School. Abby had her phone out texting Tony and McGee trying to find them. They came across Tony and Kate in the main lobby and they found McGee near the gymnasium where registration was taking place. Abby led the group squealing as she led them through to go pick up their registration materials. McGee, Kate and Tony were used to it, but Ziva was still a bit confused by Abby and her mannerisms. They reached the packet pick up table and Kate, Tony, McGee, and Abby were able to get their stuff, but Ziva still needed to talk to one of the people in charge of registration and figure her transfer out. As Abby ran around catching up with friends from last year, Jen led Ziva over to the table for new students. To Ziva's slight puzzlement Tony came with them. He offered no explanation.

Jen approached the table and talked with the lady in charge of delegating everything. The Gibbs had already sent in a registration form for Ziva, but there were still details to take care of. They got financial stuff taken care of, but then the lady directed them to one of the counselors to get Ziva's courses sorted out. The counselors name was Ms. Slater and she was a perky young woman who looked to over energetic to be dealing with teenagers on a daily basis.

"Alright, hi Ziva my name is Ms. Slater and I'll be your counselor for the next three years. I received a transcript but I can't quite read what it says. What language is it in?

"It is most likely in Hebrew. I am from Israel and my school did teach English but we primarily spoke in Hebrew."

"Oh alright then. It looks like you'll just have to tell me what level you're at in all of your classes. As a sophomore you are required to take English, Health/Drivers Ed, US History, Math, and Science. Most students have a lunch and then you have two elective slots, most students fill one of them with a language. Shall we start with English? How proficient are you in the language?"

"I have been speaking English since I was 4. I am fluent. But what is this English class? Are you still teaching high school students to speak their native language?"

"Ah, I am sorry, English class works with grammar, literature, writing and analysis. Did your old school have leveled classes?"

"Oh that makes more sense. I had a similar class last year and I was in the top class. I have read some American literature and I was on my school's newspaper when I had time away from my training."

"Alright, we may have to have you take some preliminary exams at the start of the year, but I believe we'll put you in Honors English. How does that sound?"

"What does honors mean?"

"Ah, I'm sorry it is the accelerated level. More advanced. "

"Well than that should be fine. What other classes do I have to take?"

Ms. Slater and Ziva went through the history, math and science options and Ziva ended up taking the normal US history as she knew nothing about it, Honors Precalculus and Honors Chemistry. The concept of drivers ed and health, however, confused Ziva to no end.

"Wait, I have to take a class to learn to drive? I already know how to drive. My father taught me how to drive the Humvee as girls aren't supposed to be directly involved in combat but he wanted me to further my battlefield training."

Jen, who was listening in on their conversation, and Ms. Slater were both shocked by this comment.

"Wait, I'm sorry, I think I heard you wrong. Did you just say Humvee, combat and battlefield training?" Ms. Slater asked with an incredulous tone.

Ziva was confused as to why she was confused. "Why yes, in Israel all citizens are expected to provide military service, and as my father was the director of Mossad, my training began earlier than most, but there were still a few kids my age in training with me."

Ms. Slater tried to regain composure as she took this information in. "Wait, you're the daughter of the Eli David who died a month ago?"

Ziva replied with a solemn nod.

Jen was shocked and reminded herself to have a chat with Ziva later. This girl needed help sorting out the demons from her past and Jen had a sneaking suspicion that Ziva would not adapt easily to American culture.

"Where were we?" Ms. Slater asked, still perplexed by the girl who sat in front of her.

"You were explaining to me this concept of drivers ed. It does not make sense."

"Ah, well drivers ed is a required class that teaches students the rules of the roads and how to be a safe driver. You have to take it if you want to get your driver's license when you turn 16. I see here that your birthday is October 17th so you qualify to take drivers ed this semester. How does that sound?"

"I guess I'll take your word for it. It sounds like it could be interesting."

"Alright we'll get that set for you. You'll take health class 2nd semester. Health educates students on healthy lifestyle choices and is also mandatory if you would like to graduate."

Ziva was still confused by the concept of Health class, but she decided to just go with it. She had been barraged with so much new information in the last couple days that she was becoming slightly overwhelmed. She simply nodded and Ms. Slater took that as her cue to move on.

"Now we offer courses in three different languages; French, Spanish and German. We also offer English as a second language. Are you interested in any of those?"

"Well, I already speak Hebrew, English, Spanish, French, Arabic, Farsi, Russian, German, and Italian with a degree of fluency, so I'd like to know what this English as a second-language class is."

Yet again, Ziva had succeeded in shocking Ms. Slater. She didn't know any adults who spoke that many languages and she certainly didn't know any 15 year olds with that high of a proficiency in languages. Ziva was certainly unique. "Well we have a few different levels of English as a second language. We have a class for students who are still working on learning English and need help simply comprehending the language, and then we have a class for students who have mastered English but have issues with certain elements of the American culture such as idioms and slang. I've heard that that class can really help make student's transition period easier. "

Ziva had issues with the subtleties of colloquial English so she thought that the second class sounded like a great idea. "I think I'll take the second option. Now you said I had one more elective spot open?"

Ms. Slater and Ziva worked on getting her final electives sorted out and Ziva ended up taking consumer education and jewelry making because she needed consumer education to graduate and jewelry sounded fun. Ms. Slater printed off a copy of her schedule and Ziva and Jen rejoined Tony who had been talking with some of his buddies while he waited for them. The three of them found Abby Kate and McGee and then they went over to sports registration. Abby wasn't big on the whole sports thing, but Tony played football and basketball and Kate ran cross-country. McGee was on the chess team and math team with Abby.

Ziva looked at all of the options for fall sports and she actually ended up choosing to join the swim team, with hopes of convincing the school to let her join the martial arts program when their practices began. Then Abby grabbed Ziva and Kate and dragged them over to get yearbook pictures taken, leaving McGee and Tony to jog after them. While they got pictures taken care of, Jen bought the necessary gym uniforms and picked up the rest of Ziva's information.

Spearheaded by Abby, the rest of the teenagers ran around the school, showing Ziva around and finding their lockers and classes. Abby would have run them all around on excitement if Jen had not put her foot down and, after a few calls home, Abby, Ziva, Tony, Kate and McGee piled into Jen's car and they headed back to the Gibbs household to hang out and enjoy what summer they had left.


End file.
